Coreopsis (Coreopsis spp.), also called tickseed, is a low-maintenance, drought-tolerant, long-blooming flower for beds, borders, bouquets, and containers. More than 80 varieties exist, and the showy, daisy-like blooms open from early summer to frost while the finely cut foliage carries a light anise-like scent. The plants are native to North America, grow in upright clumps, […]
Lavender (Lavandula spp.) is a fragrant perennial with gray-green foliage, upright flower spikes, and a compact shrub habit that reaches about three feet at maturity. Flowers open in summer and carry a scent that is both spicy and calming, which is why the plant turns up in gardens, sachets, and craft projects around the world.
Few annuals put on a longer show than impatiens. Grown in garden beds and containers alike, they carry bright, prolific blooms from late spring to mid-fall, and with the right care they keep flowering right up to the first frost. Plants that stall in August usually fail for one of five reasons: inconsistent watering, the
Fall is when hydrangea flowerheads turn papery and brown, and it is also when many gardeners reach for the pruners. Whether that is a good idea depends less on the calendar and more on the shrub itself. One factor decides everything: whether the plant blooms on new wood or old wood. A shrub that blooms
Overseeding and pre-emergent herbicide applications sit at opposite ends of the lawn calendar for a good reason. A pre-emergent stops germinating seeds in their tracks, and grass seed is a germinating seed. Apply the two chores too close together and the herbicide wins the argument, leaving thin turf and a wasted bag of seed. The
Hostas are among the most forgiving plants in a shade garden, but forgiving does not mean maintenance-free. When nighttime temperatures drop toward freezing and trees shed their leaves, these foliage plants start to fade and die back, and the steps you take over the next few weeks decide how they emerge in spring. The same
Autumn looks like the perfect season for tree work. Leaves drop, the weather cools, and the yard starts its wind-down. The question homeowners ask every September is whether fall is actually the right time to trim. Arborists generally say yes, with a few caveats. Trees heading into dormancy handle pruning with less stress, and removing
Habanero peppers deliver heat with a fruity, citrusy, and sometimes smoky edge that other chiles do not match, but they taste best only when fully ripe. Picked green, a habanero is hot without the sweetness and aroma that make it worth growing. Ripe fruit comes in orange, red, brown, and occasionally yellow, and the harvest
Garlic is one of the easiest crops to grow anywhere in the United States when it is planted the right way at the right time. For the biggest, best bulbs, that time is autumn, because garlic needs a stretch of cold weather to form its bulb. The full how-and-when routine in a garlic planting guide
Blackberry plants are hardy perennials that produce juicy fruit each summer or fall, and a single well-placed planting keeps yielding for 15 to 40 years. The plants grow easily in home gardens, accept a wide range of soils, and need only full sun plus routine pruning to stay productive. Gardeners who plant low-maintenance shrubs such
